Cassidy grills Trump pandemic nominee over vaccine posts
SkimNews Take
Cassidy's medical background lets him challenge a vaccine-skeptical nominee without partisan blowback, but a one-vote GOP majority means his lone objection could sink the pick — turning one senator's scrutiny into the de facto vetting mechanism.
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- Bill Cassidy grilled Sean Kaufman, Trump's nominee for Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, over a now-deleted LinkedIn post — first reported by STAT — that raised the widely-disproven claim linking the hepatitis B birth dose to autism.
- Kaufman defended himself by saying he believes vaccines are safe and effective, noting his own children received the hepatitis B birth dose, and calling the CDC "America's treasure," while blaming the deleted post on poor social media skills.
- Kaufman wavered when senators pressed him on whether he supported HHS's decision to defund mRNA vaccine research, arguing benefits and risks needed more study — a stance Cassidy called "flabbergasted" by comparing it to halting Aleve research over adverse events.
- Cassidy also cited a four-year-old school board campaign video in which Kaufman said he "hates" the CDC, the agency Kaufman would work closely with in a public health crisis.
- Republicans hold a one-vote majority on the Senate health committee, meaning a single GOP defection would sink Kaufman's nomination; Cassidy told reporters he needs to review the transcript before deciding.
- Cassidy, a physician who backed Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s confirmation, has since clashed with Kennedy over his vaccine agenda — a rift that culminated in Kennedy and Trump backing one of Cassidy's primary challengers in May, costing him his seat.
Why it matters: With Republicans holding a one-seat committee majority, a single GOP defection would sink Kaufman's nomination — and the hearing revealed that the same RFK Jr. vaccine agenda that helped topple Cassidy in his May primary is now complicating another Republican-aligned nominee's path to confirmation.
